It was a heartbreaking ending to a game that was there for the taking.

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By Ben Destefan

Waynesboro Record Herald - Waynesboro, PA

By Ben Destefan

Posted Feb. 2, 2013 at 7:29 AM
Updated Feb 2, 2013 at 7:37 AM

By Ben Destefan

Posted Feb. 2, 2013 at 7:29 AM
Updated Feb 2, 2013 at 7:37 AM

GREENCASTLE – It was a heartbreaking ending to a game that was there for the taking.

After battling back to take its first lead of the night with six minutes remaining, the Greencastle-Antrim girls' basketball team was unable to hold off Big Spring on Friday, as the Bulldogs utilized a decisive 12-4 run to close out a 42-35, Mid-Penn Colonial Division victory.

With the win, Big Spring (15-7, 10-2 MPC-Colonial) clinched at least a share of the Colonial crown while the loss could potentially serve as a devastating blow to the Blue Devils' (9-10, 7-5 MPC-Colonial) postseason hopes.

Prior to Friday's game, G-A was ranked 20th in the District 3-AAA Power Ratings, needing to leapfrog at least two schools in order to be among the top-18 qualifiers. Barring a tremendous amount of help, Friday's defeat will likely be enough to leave the Blue Devils on the outside looking in come playoff time.

"It's tough," G-A head coach Mike Rhine said. "Sometimes, even when you play well, you still end up losing. Unfortunately, that's basketball. We executed our game plan defensively and held them to 42 points. We just didn't get enough shots to fall when we had opportunities."

The contest was evenly-matched throughout, with the sides exchanging buckets from the tip, resulting in an 11-10 Big Spring advantage at the end of the first before a lay-in at the buzzer by Lindsay Bower sent the Bulldogs into the locker room up by six at 23-17.

The momentum slowly began to shift in the third, as the Blue Devils held Big Spring to just four points in the frame, allowing the comeback to commence.

After netting just one point in the first half, G-A's Chloe Hoover led the charge, beginning midway through the third and carrying into the early portions of the fourth.

Following a steal and finish by Katie Gelsinger to cut the deficit to four, five points from Hoover answered a Big Spring bucket on the other end, leaving G-A down by one at 27-26 entering the fourth.

A Bower three to open the scoring in the final frame pushed the margin to four, setting the stage for Hoover, who knocked down a jumper prior to burying a 3 on G-A's ensuing possession, granting the Blue Devils their first lead of the game at 31-30.

Unfazed, Bower struck again moments later, draining her third make from beyond the arc to reclaim the advantage at 33-31.

Big Spring extended its lead to five over the next four minutes, with a three-point play by Gelsinger keeping hope alive for the Blue Devils with 1:40 remaining, cutting the deficit to two at 37-35.

Unfortunately for the hosts, the inexperience factor of a senior-less roster proved costly down the stretch, with a Big Spring free throw being followed by a G-A turnover on a miscommunication, forcing the Blue Devils to begin fouling with 23 seconds left to play.

Page 2 of 2 - Big Spring's duo of Dalida Camdzic and Danielle Kepner casually capitalized from the charity stripe, going a combined 4-for-4 in the closing seconds to seal the seven-point victory.

"Being in games like this will only help us down the road," Rhine explained. "It just doesn't make it any easier right now. It's part of the process and hopefully we will learn from it."

Both Hoover and Hannah Crist finished with 12 points in the loss, with Crist accounting for 10 of G-A's 17 points in the first half. Gelsinger added nine points and recorded a team-high seven rebounds.

Camdzic led the Bulldogs, scoring 12 points to match the game-high totals of Hoover and Crist followed by 11 from Bower.

The Blue Devils will not be able to allow the loss to linger, as they face a quick turnaround by participating in today's Dunks for Drew event being held at Chambersburg High School.

G-A will tip-off today's action against Milton Hershey at 3 p.m.

The Blue Devils wrap-up their regular season schedule next week with non-league games against Biglerville on Tuesday and Carlisle on Wednesday.